The VVD is today introducing a change of course in the field of energy. Even if imports are cheaper, the VVD wants to opt for home-grown energy, such as gas extraction in the North Sea.
This is stated in an initiative bill by Member of Parliament Silvio Erkens that he is submitting today and has been viewed by this newspaper. In his own-initiative bill, the VVD advocates ‘choosing for national production such as gas extraction from the North Sea or hydrogen from Eemshaven, even if import would be slightly cheaper’.
This means that citizens will have to put up with the fact that in the short term they will pay more for gas than they were used to before the war in Ukraine. “But because we are no longer so sensitive to authoritarian regimes in the field of energy, it will eventually become cheaper,” emphasizes Erkens. Previously, the Netherlands purchased the cheapest gas, for example from Russia. “Now we want to invest in energy production from our own soil, so that we have to import less energy from unfree countries,” said the MP.
This means a change of course for the VVD. Because for years the liberals preferred cheap gas from Russia to gas from the Netherlands. For example, while in 2015 the PvdA was reluctant to do business with ‘such an authoritarian country as Russia’, the VVD spoke at the time of ‘a logical option’.
According to MP Erkens, this is ‘one of the great lessons we have learned from the current energy crisis’. If it is up to the liberal, “that could mean that we choose to extract more gas from the North Sea in the coming years, to avoid transferring billions to Qatar, to bring it here from there.” He also wants to invest in CO2-free energy on Dutch soil.
In the end, cheap turned out to be expensive, the liberal now argues. Russian gas ‘seemed a bit cheaper than gas from the North Sea’, but ‘that bill is now paid by many households and companies’, he explains the turnaround in policy. Moreover, he calculates that ’80 to 90 percent’ of all income from the gas that is pumped up under the North Sea will go to the Dutch State.
If necessary, do you prefer a more expensive guest from the North Sea? Will consumers be driven to extra costs as a result?
“What we have done in the past was buying Russian gas that seemed a bit cheaper than gas from the North Sea. But that bill is now paid by many households and companies, because it turned out to be unsafe. What we say is: make sure you invest a little more in energy production in the Netherlands or Norway. That may seem a bit more expensive, but it also ensures that we run less risk.”
The 2017 VVD party program literally stated: ‘The earthquakes in Groningen show that we cannot continue to extract natural gas safely everywhere in the Netherlands. The Netherlands will therefore have to import more gas in the coming decades, including from Russia.’
,,That’s right. I think that the energy crisis has shaken everyone up not only in the Netherlands, but also in Europe. We need to become much more independent in the field of energy. And if you do want to import energy from an area, it should not come too much from one country. Because you don’t know what the future will look like, or whether a crisis will arise in that country. Then it is better to get energy from your own soil, so that you do not pay this high price.”
Suppose we do indeed use Dutch gas, how much more expensive will it be?
“It would be a lot cheaper than what it is now anyway, because the prices are still sky high.”
But how much more expensive will that be?
“I expect it to be cheaper. In the past, Russian gas was slightly cheaper than gas from the North Sea and we are now paying the real price for that. The beauty of home-grown energy products – whether the gas is from the North Sea or green hydrogen or sustainable electricity: all tax revenues resulting from this go to the Dutch treasury. And with that we can also do things for Dutch citizens. At the moment we have billions in expenditure, even tens of billions last year, to import energy from countries such as Russia and Qatar. That money will stay in our own country.”
Have you already called the Wadden Association?
“We have made very clear agreements in the coalition agreement. We are not going to start any new projects in the Wadden Sea. We only look at the North Sea.”
The question is whether it will ultimately have no effect on the Wadden area if so much more drilling takes place in the North Sea?
“It’s not that much anymore. In the coming years, we want to ensure that we reduce natural gas consumption in the Netherlands as quickly as possible. We do this by switching to green gas, insulation of homes and so on. But the gas we will use in the coming years will have to come from somewhere. And gas from Qatar means transferring money to an unfree country and gas from America is very polluting shale gas, which releases a lot of CO2. Then I would say: let’s get it from our own North Sea, make sure we have it under control. As a result, the costs are lower and it is less polluting than the alternatives.”
Which countries will be blacklisted if we need more gas?
,,No. I want the Netherlands to first see if we can do something ourselves. Think of green hydrogen and only then import it. Preference is first given to friendly countries. If that is not possible, I would say: let’s avoid becoming dependent on one or two countries. Because we also see that we have become very dependent on China in the energy transition.”
“We are too dependent on China. We import most of our solar panels from China, and a lot of other important raw materials that we depend on for the energy transition also come from China. You can see that the Netherlands and Europe are becoming more aware of the risks. If a conflict like between China and Taiwan comes, they can cut us off completely from all those sustainable products.”
Which parties in the House do you expect support from?
“From left to right, everyone understands that we need to become less dependent on unfree countries. The energy crisis, the conflict in Ukraine was a wake-up call. In this uncertain world, we should no longer rely on these countries for clean and affordable energy in the future.”
GroenLinks will not be in favor of extracting more gas from the North Sea.
,,Beats. But the law is about us ultimately being more self-sufficient. The law does not say that this must be done via gas or via wind or via nuclear energy. And I do indeed think that a GroenLinks minister would make different choices than a VVD minister.”
Stay informed of the latest news about the Provincial Council elections and read exactly what we are voting for in these elections.
Watch all our videos about politics here:
Free unlimited access to Showbytes? Which can!
Log in or create an account and don’t miss a thing of the stars.
